The Soul-Songs of Illincara
by JumpingShinyFrogs
Summary: In the wake of the suspicious deaths of a huntress and an old man, the tiny island colony of Illincara threatens to tear itself apart.
1. Barcat

**Barcat**

.

Where is the Felvine

that I had the other night?

I got it from that long ears

it's important for my health

.

The people are all up in a fuss

about the old long ears

and the hunter dame too

both swallowed by the sea

.

"Murder!" some are shouting

in a voice that hurts my ears

"Monster!" scream others

and I wish I had my Felvine

.

A hunter shouts about

the people in the jungle

who find monster chicks

and bend them to their will

.

My fellow Felynes point

a paw at the dirty

filthy, lying, thieving

cunning mask-head people

.

Mask-heads say that

the hunters did it to

sully the good name

of the oh-so noble masks

.

Illincara, we call this place

the Island of Friends

but there are no friends here

save the ones who give me Felvine


	2. Cheraca

**Cheraca**

.

Fine goods for sale, and if you please

no haggling, my prices are fair and final

.

Ah but I would bargain with her,

Seela Star-Gazer, the finest

huntress on Illincara

taken from us

.

She kept us safe from all

monsters who dared to threaten us

but now she's gone

fallen into the sea

with the old Wyverian

she foolishly trusted

.

Everyone knows Wyverians are

out to get us all

pointy ears and feet with claws are

the mark of a monster

Scion says that she was killed

by one of those monster riders

who live in the jungle

but I know better

.

The old Wyverian was ready to die

and so he took her with him

a terrible crime against us all

and after she was so

very, terribly kind to him

when no one else was

.

I saw them, a few days ago

down in the market square

she offered to show him

the stars she loved so much

.

He accepted her offer, and now she is gone

who will protect us now?


	3. Lek-Dek

**Lek-Dek**

.

[The non-Laka need to chill

Who cares if

an old man

and

a self-righteous

huntress

are gone?

.

That night outside the bar

the huntress told me

monsters are cruel

and if I was not a

monster

I should not be cruel

.

If she thinks of the true-people as

nothing more than monsters

then she is just as bad

as I am

yes

she deserved

her fate]


	4. Friela

**Friela**

.

Oh but it is awful!

Murder in our good town!

Perish the thought, but

what else could it have been?

These are dark times

Riders bring their beasts

And bang the drums of war

And our hunters are all gone

Good Scion gone insane

and poor Seela slaughtered

The Shakalaka have the run

of the place now, the filthy things

And the old man killed too

Nobody cared much about

him and what he did

But someone killed him

Scion says it was a rider

But how could a rider get

into our town

without being seen?

I think there is someone

in this town

who is guilty and

who does not want to confess

Illincara is a place of friends

but I fear we are not friends

if we stab each other in the back

and not in the front


	5. Bartender

**Bartender**

.

Honestly all this talk

Of murder's bad for business

Scared people don't drink, you see

For fear someone would put

Poison in their cup

There's a simple explanation

And it doesn't involve murder

.

The huntress Seela, she was

Deep in her cups, that night

She got into a fight with

That one mask-head

Then stumbled off home

Probably got lost

And choked on her own vomit

Somewhere in the jungle

.

As for the old man, well

Scion is half-right

Oh he was killed by

A monster I'm sure

But there was no rider

The walls keep the riders out

But Scion yells and shouts

About witches and stones

As if a monster needs a reason

To kill an old man

.

Friela needs to stop

She's scaring away all

My customers, with all her talk

Of murder and insane hunters

Scion is an idiot, but he's not

Insane, at least not yet

But if he is

I am taking the next

Guild airship out of this

cursed pit

before I am the next to die


	6. Kittenlig

**Kittenlig**

.

Do I know what happened to

Seela Star-Gazer?

Of course not.

How would I?

But I'd bet my left paw

It was those dirty mask-heads

.

I saw her in the bar

sipping ale and then

Luk-duck or whatever

his name is started

a fight with our

lovely, kind huntress

.

I suppose she was quite

drunk that night

She even dropped her axe

so I passed it back to her

She said what we were

all thinking

.

She told the mask-head to

stop his pointless rituals

and he told her some things

I simply won't repeat

When she wandered out

he followed


	7. Raviel

**Raviel**

.

this is nice

very nice

a soft cradle of sand

i would have liked to have

died

in the mountains

of my youth

but this is alright too

.

i only hope that scion

will not

do something

he regrets

i wonder what

became

of seela star-gazer

she did not

meet me at

the cliff

like she said

she would

.

death met me instead

just after scion came by

screaming and shouting

at some

poor soul

he chased

.

i wonder about the

pretty girl with

the shining blue

stone

she seemed sad

as i went over the edge

.

but i don't mind

not knowing

the cold water feels

so warm to me

i think i will

sleep


	8. Rulesta

Rulesta

.

Batten down the hatches!

A storm of war is coming!

All because Scion had to

go and lose his mind.

.

I knew he hated the riders

but I didn't think

he'd go so far

As to kill two people

just to have something to blame

on the riders in the jungle.

.

I knew he was insane from

the moment he stood up

In the market square, proudly

holding up

a bloodied blue stone

and a switch-axe

.

He says he didn't kill

Seela or Raviel

but how am I meant

to believe that

when his eyes are so wild?

.

I think I will move my stall

Away from where

he likes to sit

in case the madness spreads

Yes, by the bar should be

perfect

.

Hmm

Were those skid-marks always there?


	9. Uchter Duin

**Uchter Duin**

.

This is unacceptable

and I will not take it

lying down

To slay one of my own

in cold blood

for the crime of being thoughtful

Hunters truly are

the worst kinds of men

.

So we will marshall up

our forces to bring

war to their hovels

They think of us as

no better than the creatures

we command

So we will show them

what we are really capable of

And when they plead and beg

for mercy

.

They will find none


	10. Eiteach Dearg

**Eiteach Dearg**

.

Little Mother told me to stay

Here, where she left me

She said to guard this

With my life, and so I will

Little Mother knows best

.

The sun is up now and

Little Mother is still gone

Little Mother told me to stay

And so I will stay

Little Mother loves me

.

I still guard the _sealgaire _that

Little Mother left to me

Little Mother took the

_Anam _with her when she left

Little Mother is so wise

.

There were sounds coming from the

_Bailsealgaire_ after Little Mother left me but

Little Mother will return

Like she said she would

Little Mother never lies

.

I still stand guard

Over the _coirpis _of

The _sealgaire _whose _anam_

Little Mother shared

Little Mother is so kind

.

When the small ones took

The _sealgaire _into the jungle

Little Mother thought it would be right

To take the _anam _back

Little Mother is always right

.

Where is Little Mother?


	11. Scion Wild-Heart

**Scion Wild-Heart**

.

they'll tell you i'm insane

i'll tell you that i'm not

i know what i saw

there's no mistaking it

that she-demon with

the piercing blue eyes

and the shining stone about her wrist

called down a monster

.

a scaly screeching beast

that flew furious from

the depths of the jungle

yes it was the rider

it's the only explanation

that night on the cliffs

the witch knew she was cornered

and so she shouted

and the beast came

.

her monster took the old

wyverian and dropped him in

the sea but i was

smarter than her

and so her pet did not get me

but that damned bartender

makes me out to be a fool

"monsters don't follow orders"

he says but he has never met

a rider

.

i only wish that i had

killed the rider

when first i saw her skulking

outside the village

just before the dusk

later she appeared in

the town

clutching that

familiar switch-axe

and everything went wrong

.

but it is alright now

i am not insane

and besides

we are all safe

after all

the rider is dead


	12. Gaois Laoi

**Gaois Laoi**

.

I have made a mistake

A most grievous mistake

But I could not just

Leave her there, not

When I could hear her

Soul

Singing to me

.

So I took it with me

Bound to the blade that

I know not the name of

She deserved to have

A proper resting place

With her fellows and not

Rotting in the jungle

.

I crept through the town

that night

[it helps that

she looked like me]

Then that man saw me

.

I tried to avoid him but

It was too late

And when the sound of his grief

stirred

The great sharp-scaled beast

I called to him in warning

If only I had seen

The old man

Who sat still

On the edge of the cliff

.

Oh if only I was not

Such a fool

As to think I could trust

A hunter not to kill me

But now I sit in the

Gaps between the huts

And lament

My fate

.

My dearest Red Wing

It is my only hope that you

can be free now

as can I

* * *

_There's one poem left in the story... but it won't be released for a few days. In the meantime, I invite you to try and solve the riddle of Illincara. Throw your theories at me in the reviews, and whoever gets the closest to the right answer will get a mention in the afterword of the story._

_(For those wondering why there are full stops after every stanza, it's because this site likes to eat blank lines, and it was the only way I could preserve the formatting.)_


End file.
